Why Follow-Up Matters in Building Material Sales: Beyond the Second Attempt

When it comes to trying to reach a decision maker, most salespeople give up after the second contact attempt. I’ve personally seen this when doing pipeline reviews with sales reps in the building material industry. Based on the lead’s history in the CRM it often showed that they had given up and moved onto the next builder, project manager, or architect. Many times, they ended up losing opportunities. And you know who won the deal later down the road? That’s right, their proactive and persistent competitor.

Here are some following up statistics that will show you the importance of following up with a lead.

2% of sales are made during the first point of contact.

3% of sales are made on the second contact.

5% of sales are made on the third contact.

10% of sales are made on the fourth contact.

80% of sales are made on the fifth to twelfth contact.

48% of salespeople never follow up.

25% of salespeople make a second contact and stop.

12% of salespeople make more than three contacts.

So, this means, that the more contact you make through follow-up, the higher your probability of having a conversation with the right person making buying decisions. Your goal is to speak to this person and give them the opportunity to say yes, no or maybe.

Here are 7 strategic best practices when following up that will help you close more deals.

Don’t just call them up to say, ‘’I just called to follow up.’’ Have a purpose to the follow-up. What is your goal for this follow-up? Is it to create awareness, gather information, set up an appointment or simply continue from a previous interaction. For example, say you spoke to a project manager last month and they asked to call back again in a months’ time, your follow up intro might go something like this, ‘’How you are doing John? This is Barry from Green Steel Projects. The reason for my call is I wanted to continue the conversation from when we spoke in March. Back then you mentioned that you were commencing project plans for the Edmonton project this week, and to give you a call back. I wanted to set up a time for a quick demo on how using our green steel can help this project be more sustainable. Would you be available sometime this Thursday?’’

A CRM! Yes this one makes most sales people tense. After all, they work in sales because they are a people’s person, and not much into systems and processes. However, coming from someone who hates CRMS, a CRM is critical to help you win more deals. You need to know where a lead is in their buying journey, as well as how many times you’ve contacted them and what you’ve said. But most importantly, a CRM will assist you with follow-up reminders, next steps, being on top of previous conversations, as well as prioritising your leads, and opportunities. I was once coaching a sales rep who sold steel. She was really busy and anti CRMs. She also considered herself to have a superior memory. One day she finally got through to this big shot project manager, let’s call him Greg. He specifically told her that due to client demands they prefer sustainable materials. She got really busy and said that she forgot to document this critical piece of information in the CRM. So the next day she sends this guy a follow up email without personalising it, or mentioning how her company has recycled steel beams. Even worse, the next time she followed up with Greg on the phone, she asked him the same questions. As a result, Greg was not impressed with having to repeat himself and bluntly told her this.

A sales cadence is a sequence of activities to increase contact and qualification with the decision maker. What is the sequence of touchpoints that you will create to reach the person/s who make most of the decisions when it comes to purchasing building materials? It is important to have a plan from the first point of contact, until the prospect either qualifies as an opportunity or exits the cadence. Ideally, an effective outbound sales cadence does not go beyond 14 days, with intervals of at least 3 days between each touchpoint.

A sales cadence might look something like this;
Day 1 - Contact attempt 1: Phone call/left voice message and sent an email.
Day 3 - Contact attempt 2: Phone call/sent follow up email 2.
Day 6 - Contact attempt 3: Phone and email 3.
Day 11 - Contact attempt 4: Reached decision maker. Said that they just completed a project and to touch base again in 6 months’ time, as they may have a need then. (Decision maker qualifies for an opportunity and needs to be followed up with in 6 months time.)

It is important to continue articulating value at every touchpoint. Continue to put yourself in the prospect’s shoes so you can enter the conversation that is already happening in their mind. Is this a project manager who is stressed about balancing cost, schedule and quality? Does this person prefer to do business with a supplier who understands the construction industry’s nuances and can adapt to changing demands? It’s critical to be able to articulate in a way that resonates with the prospect and how your building materials can help solve their pressing issues.

Perhaps remember something unique about the p

rospect based on your research about their company. Be the domain expert and use their industry terminology and jargon. Or mention one of their recent successes, media appearance, or posts on LinkedIn that you liked. For example, say you were reaching out to an architect, be sure to mention something you like about their past projects or make a reference about their design philosophy.

A fantastic way to continue to create touchpoints and stay on top of mind is to connect with some of the prospects in your target accounts through LinkedIn. Keep adding value by posting content that is useful, educational, and relevant. They may not be ready to purchase right now, but when they do, you want to be one of the first material suppliers that crosses their mind.

Once you reach the prospect whether on the phone or face to face, it’s good practice to follow the conversation with an email. Be sure to thank them for their time, summarise what you discussed and outline some next steps. Also, it is useful to have a well-designed email signature that provides your contact details and links to any further marketing material you would like them to click on.

Something to always remember when you’re hesitant or procrastinating on following up; people buy when they are ready to buy, not when you're ready to sell. So, you have to be there following up religiously. It’s a matter of staying on top of mind, so you could be one of the first building material supplier that they may think about when they have a specific project or need.